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Archive for September, 2011

Elie Tahari Fall 2011 Event

Totally got to hang out with Elie Tahari.

!!!

He’s such a nice guy, and so clearly loved seeing all the women at the event (held at the Tahari store on West Broadway to celebrate the re-launch of Tahari’s e-commerce site) trying on his designs.

Which included…these shoes.

I mean…right?

Some more favorites from the fall collection:

Carolann Pump; Edita Blouse; Winston Bootie

After our mini-styling sessions (above and in the top image, I’m wearing a Tahari peacoat with my own shirt, pants, and heels), we got to hang out in the window and pretend to be supermodels (or at least mannequins) for a moment. Anytime I can channel Kim Cattrall is good by me.

Thanks so much to Tahari for having me!



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September 30th, 2011 | Play, Style | 5 Comments »

Pregnancy Advice II: Money-Saving Maternity Style

Q. What basics were a staple of your wardrobe? What are key pieces to splurge on?

I wrote a post over on Mommyish about this a couple of months ago, but now that I’m at the end of the pregnancy it seems worth revisiting. First, let me re-state what I wrote in my intro post to this mini-series: pregnancy is an enormously individual experience and there is no one way to “do” pregnancy (style or otherwise) “right”; this is just what worked for me and helped me to save money while having fun with my changing shape.

When I found out I was pregnant, I have to tell you: I was a little nervous about the expense associated with buying lots of new pieces that I’d never wear again. But while I certainly picked up a few fun items here and there, I can’t tell you how much money I saved by being creative with accessories and layering, and by staying far, far away from those overpriced maternity stores. There is no reason to spend eighty bucks on a fancy maternity t-shirt when you can just buy a long regular tee at a discount store…or layer a long ribbed tank under a blouse or tee you already own, like I did above.

Splurge: The truth is that I didn’t splurge on any major items while pregnant, simply because my style tends towards being flowy anyway, so I already had a lot of pieces that I could just re-imagine a bit to work into a maternity wardrobe. That said, I can imagine that if I had been pregnant in the wintertime I probably would have picked up a 60′s-style swing coat (which could be worn post-pregnancy as well), a great pair of maternity jeans, and a pair of black maternity pants.

Steal: One of the most fun parts of the past few months was experimenting with different looks than I would ordinarily wear, so I’d definitely encourage you to indulge yourself a little by picking up things like inexpensive dresses and tunics. You’ll definitely have to buy a couple of new bras (go to Daffy’s), and if you want to keep wearing your non-pregnancy pants for awhile, a maternity belt is a must.

Shop Your Closet: I saved buckets of money by working in as much of my non-pregnancy wardrobe as possible. Sift through your closet for longer tops and tunics, tanks to layer under them if they’re too short/sheer, any and all pants with elastic waists, and every accessory you can find (hats, scarves, jewelry). And be creative, bringing back into rotation older pieces that you may not tend to wear in your “regular” life but that are fun to try out on your new shape (for example, you may usually feel uncomfortable in body-conscious tank dresses, but find that you enjoy wearing them when pregnant to show off your curves).

Of course, what you’ll end up wearing will have a ton to do with your personal style, your body type, your job, and the season (I personally found a summertime pregnancy wardrobe to be way easier and less expensive than I imagine a wintertime one would be, since I didn’t have to purchase bigger-ticket items like holiday cocktail dresses or coats…and because those light summer dresses are so comfortable and cheap), but there were definitely some pieces that I kept in constant rotation right through to the very end.

After the jump, what I wore the most over the past nine months, complete with a little photo retrospective (each image links through to the original post).

(more…)



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September 30th, 2011 | Baby, Best, Style | 3 Comments »

LOFT Cares BCRF Blogger Collaboration

I was so honored to be asked to participate in the LOFT Cares BCRF Blogger Collaboration. Last year, Ann Inc. donated $2.7 million to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and this year they’ve worked with bloggers to create a limited-edition line of tees and bracelets to aid in their efforts.

There are lots of ways that you can get involved and show your support, including purchases of the LOFT Cares card or one of the limited-edition items ($5 from each purchase goes to the BCRF). Through October 31, you can also enter to win one of the LOFT Cares bracelets pictured above.

On me: LOFT Cares Inspiration Tee; Bow Bangle by Rachel Leigh.

Click here to Shop For The Cause, and click through to the LOFT Facebook Fan Page if you’d like to check out all the BCRF Blogger Collaboration participants.

Click here to learn more about the BCRF.



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September 29th, 2011 | Style | No Comments »

Wonder What This Could Mean?

I spent last night in a post-apocalypic wasteland where buildings were falling down all around me, and I had about thirty seconds to run through my apartment getting everything I needed packed into a tiny bag before it collapsed. I remember being extremely concerned about making sure that I located the cord that lets me download photos to my computer.

That’s a tough one, huh?



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September 29th, 2011 | Baby | 1 Comment »

Apologies!

My comments got all sorts of messed up yesterday, thanks to a switch-up in the commenting program I use and some resulting total confusion on my part.

And of course said messed-upedness coincided with a fabulous $100 TJ Maxx giftcard giveaway that I really want all of you to have the opportunity to win, because it’s fall, and fall fashion is the best, and I want you to have the chance to get all dressed up in fabulous hats and scarves and beautiful things for free.

So if you wanted to (or tried to) enter but your comment didn’t show up, please accept my sincerest apologies – go ahead and comment again under the Like A Rolling Stone post (you can also enter by voting for your favorite blogger’s look here), and you’ll be good to go. And FYI, you can comment once a day every day between now and October 12 for extra chances to win.

Again: so so sorry!

Here’s a bunny rabbit to make it all better:

xo

J



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September 29th, 2011 | Lifestyle | 1 Comment »

Easy Cinnamon Rolls

This is one of the easiest recipes ever, and produces absolutely perfect cinnamon rolls every single time. It’s also very basic, so feel free to play around with it by adding things like nuts, peanut butter, Nutella, or maple icing – it’s all good.

To me, though, the simplicity is what makes these so great: made as described below, they’re more of a lightly sweetened breakfast bread than a dessert, and just one or two make a fantastic anytime snack.

What you need:

2 cups flour (plus more for sprinkling)

4 tbsp shortening

4 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup milk

About half a cup of butter

Brown sugar

Cinnamon

What you do:

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.

2. Use a pastry cutter or two knives to cut the shortening into the dry ingredients (keep going until you get a pebbly texture).

3. Add the milk and mix well.

4. Turn the batter out onto a floured surface and knead twenty or so times, and then pat into a rough rectangular shape. Roll to about 1/4″ thick with a floured rolling pin (if the batter is too wet, just add more flour until it holds together well and doesn’t stick to the surface or rolling pin).

5. Spread thickly with butter, and then sprinkle over brown sugar and cinnamon. I didn’t put quantities above because this is really to your taste – put on more if you’d like them to be very sweet, less if you’re looking for a simpler taste.

6. Roll lengthwise into a long roll and cut into 1″ pieces.

7. Place rolls on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake at 450F for 12-15 minutes, or until lightly golden brown.

Click here for Crunchy Nutella & Peanut Butter Cinnamon Rolls.



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September 28th, 2011 | Eat | 5 Comments »

Like A Rolling Stone

Let me tell you a sort of sad story about a twelve-year-old me.

I switched into a new school for seventh grade partially because I just wanted a change, but also because for the past couple of years I had been bullied pretty badly at my old school, and as Middle School began things only got worse. I’m not talking “Boys teased me for my skinny legs”; I’m talking about a genuinely miserable situation, more days than not. But I transferred, and as it turned out I really loved my new school: I developed some confidence over the interim summer and made new friends right away, and the creative, relaxed curriculum was much more up my alley than my previous school’s formal approach.

One of the most fun things about my new school: there were no uniforms, so for the first time in my life I could wear what I wanted, and the burst of confidence I felt about my new surroundings made me excited to experiment with style.

I still remember the outfit I chose for my the Community Service Committee introductory meeting, held at 8AM during the first week of school: a brown-and-white striped mock turtleneck, a short brown skirt, and white ribbed tights. I felt spectacular in it. I seriously thought it was the coolest thing I’d ever worn. And I sat in that Community Service meeting feeling excited, and hopeful about the year to come, and extra-special cool because I was at a “meeting,” which felt grown-up, and because I was drinking a Snapple Iced Tea, and that was the thing that year. We’re talking extreme sophistication.

Remember how, if you flipped over a Snapple and patted the bottom, the top would make a popping sound? Well, I thought I’d flip it over and pop it a bit, to enhance the whole “oh, just hangin’ here drinking a Snapple iced tea” vibe. And of course, because this is how things work, the moment I did that the entire glass Snapple bottle fell apart – I mean that literally, the thing fell apart - and iced tea poured out all over my brand-new outfit, soaking me from the waist down and completely destroying those pristine ribbed tights that I had been so proud of. I handled it OK and sort of laughed it off…but wow, did I ever wish that wasn’t something that had happened during my first week at a school where I wanted nothing more than to not be that dorky new girl.

What does this story have to do with this post?

One, something about the outfit I’m wearing here reminds me of that outfit, pre-Snapple-dousing. The colors, or maybe just how good I felt in it.

And two, after we took these pictures (Kendrick took them) up on the roof, we were just hanging out and chatting in the sun, and I thought to myself that…you know, lately I’m just so damn happy. Not in a blinders-on, rainbows-and-bluebirds, everything’s-so-perfect way…but in a real, full way, a way I don’t know that I’ve ever felt before. Sometimes I feel like I want to hit the pause button on the movie of my life, because it just feels so precarious, like at any moment something will break and all that happiness will come pouring out.

But you know, if there’s one thing that the past few years have taught me, it’s this: things sometimes get worse, and they sometimes get better, but they always change. There’s not a whole lot of use in worrying about making sure that things stay the same, because the fact is that they won’t.

But I’ve also learned something else: that the stuff that feels too insurmountable and too painful to handle almost never is.

And stains?

They come out.

And even if they don’t…you just roll on, pristine tights or no.

Switching gears, now.

For this post, I was presented with a little challenge: TJ Maxx asked me and four other bloggers to build a look centered around a cashmere ruana (it’s that shawl thing I’m wearing above; I had to look it up, too), using items found at one of their stores. And so for a hundred bucks even, I put together an outfit that’s everything I love about fall: October-forest colors, super-soft accessories, and layer after layer after layer.

And major bellbottoms.

Love them.

These are kind of amazing, right? I couldn’t believe it when I spotted them: they’re the exact pair I’ve been coveting for over a year now…and they were $39. (My favorite cut for bellbottoms: a little loose through the leg, low-waisted, and with the biggest flare possible.)

This top, from Nicole Richie’s Winter Kate line, is the perfect thing to take me through the rest of this pregnancy…and I’m not exactly throwing it in the trash once the baby arrives (which should be any day now!). It‘s just gorgeous…especially paired with that to-die-for chain link necklace.

On me: Hat, blouse, ruana, and jeans from TJ Maxx (purchased with giftcard provided for challenge); necklace c/o Chloe & Isabel; no-name sunglasses.

If you’d like to check out how the other bloggers styled the ruana, you can click through using the button below. And be sure to vote for your favorite (either here or by commenting on this post below; both work!), because a vote automatically enters you to win a $100 TJ Maxx gift card (you can vote once a day between now and October 12 for extra chances to win).



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September 28th, 2011 | Best, Love, Style | 50 Comments »

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